Previews

Gauntlet: Seven Sorrows

The historic series returns as an action/RPG heavy on the action, and a little smarter on the RPG.

Spiffy:

Combat more fleshed out to become integral to game's enjoyment; playing online is sure to be huge; looks nice so far.

Iffy:

Wizard will never "need food badly" ever again; the action/RPG genre is starting to become pass¿.

One of Midway's most-loved franchises is Gauntlet. It ushered in a legion of multiplayer action/RPGs, making games like Baldur's Gate and X-Men Legends owe it more than a modicum of respect. The four original heroes -- Warrior, Valkyrie, Wizard, and Elf -- are back, but they're not the only legendary characters to be associated with Gauntlet: Seven Sorrows. At least a few more exist on the development side, such as DOOM's John Romero and J E Sawyer of Icewind Dale fame.

The backstory to this new Gauntlet doesn't start out with our heroes in the best condition. It seems they've been crucified to mystical trees for hundreds of years by an evil emperor -- which, any way you slice it, has got to suck. After finally breaking free, it's time for payback. However, it's also time to elaborate on each character's own past struggles. These are no longer the simple ass-kicking avatars of the old arcade game, but have complex personalities, which the story will explore at length. You'll have a chance to play as each of the characters, instead of being stuck with one for the duration of the journey.

One of the goals for the Gauntlet team is to make combat something you look forward to. They want you to not just fight to get gold or items, but because it's a lot of fun to rip monsters to shreds. Seven Sorrows features several forms of weapons: piercing accoutrements are good for quality shots on one target, while cleaving ones will cause small damage to a wide group. Of course, the wizard and elf will be equipped with some fearsome magical spells to counterbalance their lack of physical power.

Health potions are gone. John Romero, in the demonstration of the game, was very adamant that they didn't want or need potions. Now, enemies you kill will drop small amounts of energy. This is a much more hands-on approach to survival, and means that the person in your party who's hurting had best get his or her butt to the energy pick-up before they bite it. This is all well and good, but I still miss hearing "Wizard needs food badly." At least I can play the original game on Midway Arcade Treasures 1.

While action is the intended means to gaming satisfaction, RPG elements are kept relatively light. Each character can manage their equipment in real-time, thus eliminating those annoying pauses we've become accustomed to in games like Dark Alliance 2 and Champions of Norrath. How many times have you yelled at your teammate to just pick a freakin' helmet already so you don't have to sit there looking at their armor-clad behind?